Saturday, November 8, 2014

Goodbye to All My Online Friends

Well, it is the time to say goodbye. I have thought about this for a couple of months and finally made the decision to go. Grace has gotten to the age that she no longer wishes to have her life shared and she is completely most of her work independently now. This leaves me not much to talk about in the homeschooling arena. I think it is time to take a step back and find another direction for my life to go in. This blog was mostly started to chronicle our lives as a homeschooling family. Now that we are reaching the end of this amazing road we have been on since 2nd grade I need to see where this leaves me and what I might want to do with my future. I have met so many great online people through blogging and I appreciate them so much. I will leave this up for a couple of weeks and then change the blog to private until I see what I want to do with all my posts. I wish great things for you all and God Bless.

Friday, November 7, 2014

Back on Trim Healthy Mama - For Real This Time!

Coconut flavored candy bars
 
Trim Healthy Mama is a great way to go when you want to lose inches and pounds. Grace and myself did THM from January to April or May this year and we each lost 10 pounds and lots of inches. The only problem we found is that when you go off the diet the inches and bloat comes back. Over the past month or so the bloating has really started to bother me from all the carb mixing meals I was eating. So back on Trim Healthy Mama we go!

Red Lobster Style Biscuits
 
We are about to complete our first complete week back on THM and really it hasn't been that bad. There are a few things that we don't budge on. I eat a couple of squares of 70 percent dark chocolate a day and Grace get a few chips. I have lost 1 1/2 pounds in five days and can already feel the bloat and budge look in the mid section leaving.

Cheese Crips
 
Research, research, research is what makes this eating lifestyle work. Lots of hours on Pinterest looking up recipes to try that a teenager would eat. I am including links of some of our successes this week:
 
Baked Cali Tots - We tried this one because Grace's favorite thing in the world is French friends and potatoes. She liked these but didn't love them. To me and Scott they tasted similar to a hushpuppy and we did like them.
 
Red Lobster Style Biscuits - Again myself and Scott really liked these and Grace was ho hum. There are two versions and I used sour cream. Grace could taste the sour cream which she doesn't like. Next time I will try the whipping cream version.
 
Cheese Crisps - Very easy to create, only one ingredient - cheese. Supposed to be a crispy alternative to chips. They taste good but did not turn out very crispy. I think next go around they need to be cut thinner to get a crispier texture.
 
Butterfinger Bars - We needed something sweet in the house and this one was a winner for everyone. It tastes more like an almond joy than a butter finger but that may be due to using a coconut flavored peanut butter as opposed to plain peanut butter.
 
If you would like to see all the THM recipes I have collected please follow my board on Trim Healthy Board on Pinterest.
 
 
 

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Beauty Beheld

 
We are trying hard to do some type of intentional exercise a few times a week. On Monday we went on a little adventure just minutes from our front door. Normally we take the same path for each walk but this time we turned to the left and it led us to God' beautiful world.

 
The destination being a beautiful private lake. Along with lots of fall color.

 
The walk was strenuous and just what we needed. Hills to get us breathing hard.

 
It was a glorious hour that I hope to repeat again this week and the remainder of this year before Old Man Winter sets in. What made it even more beautiful was that Scott, Grace, and myself were all able to spend some quality time together, which doesn't happen often. Have you gone outside today to visit God's beauty?

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Cooperative Costume Party

Getting ready to play the donut game.
 
Last night our Cooperative had a costume party. Mostly I put this together for our beloved co-director Ms. Shannon who moved away back in May. She was coming for a visit and wanted to see all the kids and family while here. The timing of Halloween and the fact that most of the guys are drama students and relish in dressing up became the them of the party. We had current Cooperative attendees present as well as alumni of the program. It truly was so great to see everyone.

Spider tossing game.
 
When I discovered that close to 70 children, teens, and their families would be in attendance I knew I needed to recruit some help. My sister is a perfect party planner and game show host so she was my first choice. We planned an evening of Minute to Win It type games and she was Tacky Jack the game show host. Telling jokes and leading the games. My niece, nephew, and my sister's good friend all jumped in to help as well.

Post Its Game
I think all the families had fun. It is always great to hang out with the gang. Lots of laugh, fellowship, and love for each other.
 

 
The costumes were great. My favorites were the little Minion and Carol Burnett's version of Scarlet O'Hara.

 
So much sugar I'm sure the kids were up for hours afterward.
 
 
Love these kids!

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Halloween - Family Style

 
Grace hasn't don the true trick or treating thing for a few years, but as all my readers know she loves costumes and makeup. Now that she is older Halloween takes on a different meaning for her. She gets to look at it from the other side. We felt that this was the perfect time to find somewhere to hand out candy so that she could also advertise her Birthday Party business by passing out flyers.

Cousins
 
We live in a remote area with only 6 houses on our gravel road and in the 13 years we have lived here have never had a trick or treater come to our door. My sister's house is a different story. My parents also now live there so it was a family affair.

 
Fun couple of hours for all. Lots of candy eating, jokes, and watching all the cute kids in costumes come by.